In today’s complex business landscape, efficient material management across warehouses, manufacturing facilities, and distribution centers is critical for driving operational excellence and optimizing the supply chain. Oracle Material Management offers a robust, cloud-based inventory platform that enables businesses to unify on-premise and cloud-based inventory operations.
With intelligent inventory tracking, advanced replenishment capabilities, and support for a wide range of supply chain processes and protocols, Oracle Material Management empowers organizations to streamline operations, accelerate fulfillment, and adapt quickly to evolving market demands.
What is Oracle Material Management?
Oracle Material Management is an enterprise-grade inventory management solution designed to help organizations connect materials, processes, and supply chain operations across complex business environments. It provides a unified set of tools and services, including inventory optimization, cloud-based tracking, demand-driven replenishment, and pre-built inventory workflows, to streamline the movement of materials between warehouses, production facilities, and distribution centers.
Designed to support inventory optimization initiatives, Oracle Material Management simplifies complex supply chains, enhances process efficiency, and ensures inventory accuracy across the enterprise. As a global inventory management solution, it allows companies to consolidate disparate inventory tracking systems into a single, comprehensive platform that supports the entire production lifecycle from raw materials to finished products.
Oracle Material Management integrates seamlessly with other supply chain management applications within the Oracle Cloud ecosystem, providing a cohesive framework for managing inventory operations across diverse business types. Whether you’re looking to improve inventory accuracy, optimize stock levels, or enhance visibility across your supply chain, Oracle Material Management delivers the tools and capabilities needed to meet these objectives.
Key Features and Benefits
Comprehensive Inventory Capabilities
Oracle Material Management supports end-to-end inventory management, from raw materials to finished products, enabling seamless tracking across diverse warehouse locations and production facilities. This comprehensive approach to inventory management ensures that organizations maintain optimal inventory levels while minimizing carrying costs and improving overall operational efficiency. The system allows organizations to:
- Access balances and monitor material statuses across multiple inventories
- Track lots and serial numbers for enhanced traceability
- Manage the proper stocking and handling of various materials
- Initiate stock issues, receipts, counts, and transfers within and between locations
- Simplify the classification of materials and identify problem products
Prebuilt Inventory Workflows
Oracle Material Management offers a comprehensive suite of prepackaged inventory processes and classifications, including ABC analysis and optimization methods, all accessible through the Oracle Cloud landscape. These prebuilt workflows include:
- Setting up items and catalogs
- Defining units of measure
- Configuring carriers and transit times
- Establishing sub-inventory structures
- Creating transaction types and reasons
- Implementing material statuses
- Configuring picking rules and assignments
These prebuilt components provide a foundation for standardized inventory processes based on industry best practices, allowing organizations to implement proven inventory management methodologies without starting from scratch.
Real-Time Inventory Visibility
The platform provides dashboard overviews that allow for easy inventory monitoring, stock level management, and analytics reporting. With Oracle Warehouse Management integration, users gain enhanced visibility into warehouse operations, further improving inventory accuracy and operational efficiency. This real-time visibility enables organizations to:
- Track inventory levels and movements as they occur
- Make informed decisions based on accurate, up-to-date information
- Respond quickly to changes in demand or supply conditions
- Optimize inventory levels to reduce carrying costs
Strategic Sourcing and Management
Oracle Material Management provides built-in supplier relationship management tools that enable users to create, manage, and optimize supplier networks securely, with monitoring features that offer real-time visibility into inventory levels and material flow. These strategic sourcing capabilities help organizations reduce inventory investment while ensuring material availability to meet customer demand. Key capabilities include:
- Consigned inventory management from multiple suppliers
- Complete visibility into consigned materials
- Simplified management of stock levels, consumption, and supplier payments
- Min-max planning capabilities for optimized replenishment
Integrated Control Systems
The system supports inventory managers and operational users through user-friendly, cloud-based environments, making material tracking and maintenance easier without extensive technical knowledge. This integrated approach ensures consistent data and processes across the organization, eliminating silos and improving overall operational efficiency.
Oracle Material Management integrates with:
- Oracle Order Management for streamlined order fulfillment
- Oracle E-Business Suite for comprehensive enterprise resource planning
- Oracle Fusion Cloud for enhanced cloud capabilities
- Other Oracle and third-party applications through standard interfaces
Conducting a Material Management Assessment
Collaborate
Enhance response times with built-in request features that streamline inventory changes and system updates more efficiently across the supply chain. This collaborative approach ensures that all stakeholder requirements are considered and that the implemented solution meets the organization’s overall business objectives. By bringing together cross-functional expertise, organizations can create inventory management solutions that address both operational and strategic needs.
Oracle Material Management facilitates collaboration between:
- Supply chain managers
- Inventory specialists
- Warehouse managers
- IT personnel
- Finance teams
- Trading partners
Document
Maintain detailed documentation for the warehouse landscape and inventory strategy to simplify material tracking and improve communication across operational teams. Key documentation includes:
- Inventory management policies and procedures
- Warehouse layout and organization
- Item master data and classification
- Transaction types and business rules
- Security and access controls
- Integration requirements with other systems
Proper documentation ensures consistency in inventory processes and provides a foundation for continuous improvement as business needs evolve.
Recommend
Access the latest Oracle material management technology recommendations to automate inventory tasks and connect core business processes across the enterprise supply chain. These recommendations enable organizations to design inventory management solutions that leverage Oracle’s core capabilities while addressing their specific business requirements.
Oracle provides comprehensive recommendation frameworks based on:
- Industry best practices
- Customer success stories
- Proven implementation methodologies
- Optimization strategies
Optimize
Leverage a strategic approach and best practices based on Oracle’s Inventory Optimization Methodology to optimize critical inventory levels and reduce carrying costs. These optimization methodologies help organizations strike a balance between inventory availability and cost efficiency, ensuring that the right materials are available at the right time without excessive inventory investment.
Optimization techniques include:
- Min-max planning for replenishment
- ABC analysis for inventory classification
- Multi-echelon inventory optimization
- Demand forecasting using historical data
- Supply chain orchestration based on real-time conditions
Navigating Oracle Inventory Management
Prebuilt inventory solutions
Access over 3,200 prebuilt inventory processes to streamline material management between Oracle and third-party applications and warehouse systems. Oracle Inventory Management includes extensive predefined configurations and processes, including:
- Define Inventory Management task lists
- Interorganization parameters configuration
- Account aliases setup
- Transaction sources, types, and reasons definition
- Item transaction defaults establishment
- Material status management
- Pick slip grouping rules configuration
These prebuilt solutions provide a foundation for rapid implementation while allowing for customization to meet specific business requirements. By leveraging these predefined components, organizations can accelerate their journey to optimized inventory management.
AI-assisted web interfaces
Create, manage, and optimize inventory workflows through AI-assisted web interfaces and intuitive material management tools. These user-friendly interfaces enable inventory professionals to perform their tasks more efficiently, reducing training requirements and enhancing overall productivity.
Oracle Material Management interfaces leverage advanced technologies to simplify user interactions:
- Intuitive web-based interfaces for inventory management tasks
- Role-based access control for appropriate functionality
- Customizable dashboards for monitoring key metrics
- Advanced search capabilities for locating inventory information
- Mobile accessibility for warehouse operations
Modern inventory tracking
Utilize modernized tracking tools, such as Oracle Warehouse Management, to simplify migration from legacy systems to cloud-based inventory management. These tracking capabilities ensure that organizations maintain accurate inventory records, improving decision-making and operational efficiency.
Advanced tracking capabilities include:
- Lot and serial number control for detailed traceability
- Cross-referenced items management
- Status tracking for quality control
- Location tracking for efficient warehouse operations
- Ownership tracking for consigned inventory
Material transaction implementations
Leverage comprehensive inventory control recommendations to accelerate and optimize implementations for critical material movement interfaces. The system provides standardized processes for these transactions, ensuring consistency and accuracy in inventory operations while allowing for customization to address specific business requirements.
Oracle Material Management supports a wide range of inventory transactions:
- Receipts and issues
- Transfers between locations
- Adjustments and physical inventory counts
- Production completions and returns
- Customer returns processing
- Consignment consumption
- Project-related transactions
Streamlining Supply Chain Management
Connect
Utilize your own domain to create connected inventory APIs and interfaces, and extend the prebuilt Oracle inventory model to connect your Oracle system with other third-party supply chain applications. These connectivity features ensure that Oracle Material Management works seamlessly with your existing technology ecosystem, providing a unified platform for inventory management across the enterprise.
Integration capabilities include:
- Integration with other Oracle applications
- APIs for connecting with third-party systems
- Support for standard EDI transactions
- Ability to extend the inventory model for specific requirements
Protect
Leverage intelligent inventory management tools to transform your material data and relevant documentation, manage stock levels, protect inventory from shrinkage, and cache critical inventory data at the distribution center edge. These protection mechanisms ensure the integrity and security of your inventory data, reducing the risk of unauthorized access or data loss.
Security features include:
- Role-based access control
- Audit trails for tracking changes
- Backup and recovery capabilities
- Encryption for sensitive data
Publish
Publish and manage relevant inventory metrics through your own domain, branding, and methodology. These publishing features provide stakeholders with the information they need to make informed decisions about inventory management and supply chain operations.
Reporting and analytics capabilities include:
- Standard and custom reports
- Real-time dashboards
- Export capabilities for data sharing
- Scheduled report distribution
Facilitating Integration Across Warehouses
Cloud development
Create, manage, and optimize all inventory transactions within a single, cloud inventory management interface. Oracle Fusion Cloud provides:
- Cloud-native architecture for scalability
- Web-based interfaces for universal access
- Automatic updates without disruptive upgrades
- Elastic computing resources for varying workloads
This cloud-based approach enables organizations to deploy and maintain inventory management solutions more efficiently, reducing IT overhead and improving agility.
Unified inventory control
Leverage a single technology solution to manage material movement across both cloud and on-premise environments. Oracle Material Management provides:
- Consistent inventory processes across locations
- Centralized management of inventory policies
- Standardized item identification and classification
- Consolidated reporting and analytics
This unified approach eliminates silos and ensures consistency in inventory management practices across the enterprise, improving overall operational efficiency.
Private enterprise landscape
Run key inventory operations within the private Oracle landscape without requiring the routing of sensitive inventory data to the cloud. Deployment options include:
- Public cloud deployment for maximum flexibility
- Private cloud deployment for enhanced security
- Hybrid deployment models combining cloud and on-premise
- On-premise deployment for specific requirements
These flexible deployment options enable organizations to implement Oracle Material Management in a manner that aligns with their unique security, compliance, and operational requirements.
Improving Vendor Management
Simplify
Streamline business-to-supplier integration scenario management flows by enhancing communication between vendor partners and other key stakeholders. These capabilities improve collaboration with suppliers, reduce procurement costs, and ensure material availability to meet production requirements.
Oracle Material Management simplifies vendor relationships through:
- Consigned inventory management
- Complete visibility into consigned materials
- Simplified management of stock levels and consumption
- Streamlined communication with suppliers
Accelerate
Leverage an efficient, intuitive onboarding process to add new suppliers and streamline core procurement workflows. These accelerated onboarding capabilities enable organizations to quickly establish relationships with new suppliers, improving supply chain flexibility and resilience.
Supplier onboarding features include:
- Standardized supplier setup processes
- Template-based configuration
- Bulk data import capabilities
- Role-based access for supplier self-service
Monitor
Monitor inventory levels between business partners to ensure smooth material flows and better collaboration across the supplier ecosystem. These monitoring features help organizations identify and address supply chain issues before they impact production or customer service.
Monitoring capabilities include:
- Real-time visibility into supplier shipments
- Quality tracking for received materials
- Lead time monitoring and analysis
- Supply disruption alerts and notifications
Exchange
Utilize advanced cloud inventory capabilities to improve data exchange and share critical inventory data with supplier partners across the landscape. These exchange capabilities enhance collaboration with suppliers, ensuring that all parties have the necessary information to optimize the supply chain.
Information exchange features include:
- Electronic data interchange capabilities
- Supplier portals for self-service access
- Automated notifications for replenishment
- Shared forecasts and planning information
Simplifying Inventory Control with Open Standards
Prebuilt inventory controls
Accelerate system connectivity and standardize integrations between Oracle and third-party inventory applications. Oracle Material Management includes extensive prebuilt controls:
- Standardized transaction processing rules
- Predefined approval workflows
- Configurable business rules
- Default settings based on industry best practices
These prebuilt controls provide a foundation for consistent inventory management while allowing for customization to address specific business requirements.
JSON and RESTful APIs
Leverage open standards and data formats to improve inventory integration, regardless of any existing third-party system architecture. Modern integration standards include:
- RESTful APIs for real-time integration
- JSON data format for flexible exchange
- Web services for standardized communication
- Support for synchronous and asynchronous patterns
These open standards facilitate the integration of Oracle Material Management with your existing technology ecosystem, thereby reducing implementation complexity and costs.
Bulk inventory management
Support the upload and download of critical inventory data regardless of the structure of the underlying warehouse architecture. Bulk management capabilities include:
- Mass update capabilities for inventory records
- Bulk data import and export functions
- Scheduled batch processing for recurring operations
- High-performance processing for large volumes
These bulk management features improve efficiency for large-scale inventory operations, reducing manual effort and improving data accuracy.
Custom inventory fields
Connect common resource definitions from third-party applications to a normalized inventory form for better consistency and integrity across warehouse locations. Customization capabilities include:
- Adding custom fields to inventory records
- Flexible categorization schemas
- User-defined attributes for specialized tracking
- Custom validation rules for data integrity
These customization features allow organizations to tailor Oracle Material Management to their specific business requirements while maintaining standardization and consistency.
Get Started with Our Oracle Experts
Surety Systems provides strategic advisory services tailored to your needs, whether you’re building inventory systems from scratch, modernizing legacy material management, or navigating complex hybrid supply chain environments.
We work alongside your internal teams to design, implement, and optimize inventory frameworks that enhance visibility, improve material tracking, and drive operational efficiency. From initial assessment to post-deployment support, our senior-level Oracle consultants ensure a seamless and scalable material management journey every step of the way.
Contact Us
For more information about our Oracle consulting services or to get started on a project with our team, contact us today.
